Honda BR-V leaked ahead of global debut

Honda’s next big entrant for the India market, the BR-V SUV has been leaked ahead of its global debut in Indonesia.

The new Honda BR-V is an SUV based on the Brio platform. These first set of images show the SUV in its close-to-production version. The Honda BR-V, as hinted by us earlier, is likely to share a lot of common parts from the Mobilio both on the exteriors and under the skin, however, the front styling of the new BR-V differs largely from its MPV cousin. The BR-V gets a more squarish look upfront with a chrome-laden grille and new headlamps that have projector beams and chrome inserts. The front bumper is new and gets a wider air dam and two chrome-ringed fog lamps as well.

Moving on to the sides, the BR-V is likely to look similar to the Mobilio MPV thanks to similar doors and window-line but will get additional ground clearance and unique body cladding along with larger alloy wheels.

On the engine department, there is a possibility of the engines getting an update. There will be the familiar 1.5-litre petrol and the 1.5-litre diesel on offer. However, the big news is that Honda is likely to offer a six-speed manual gearbox on the BR-V, in place of the five-speed unit seen on the Amaze and the Mobilio. According to our sister magazine, Autocar Indonesia, this new six-speed gearbox will have optimised ratios for better engine response and class-leading fuel efficiency.

Also, likely to be on offer is a CVT gearbox which could be a segment first. Currently, the Amaze and Brio come with a five-speed automatic gearbox in India. This CVT gearbox mated to the petrol motor, will be an all-new compact unit developed specifically for the BR-V that uses Honda’s Earth Dreams technology.

The new Honda BR-V will directly compete with the likes of the Mahindra Scorpio, Renault Duster and the recently-launched Hyundai Creta.